Modular drawer handle



Jan. 11, 1966 A. LUNDELL 3,228,740

MODULAR DRAWER HANDLE Filed Jan. 22, 1964 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTORKERN/T A. L UNDELL ATTORNEY Jan. 11, 1966 K. A. LUNDELL MODULAR DRAWERHANDLE 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Jan. 22, 1964 INVENTOR KERN/7' A. LU/VDELLBY 61 1, M ATTORNEY 1966 K. A. LUNDELL 3,228,740

MODULAR DRAWER HANDLE Filed Jan. 22, 1964 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 l L ll i MiaW /7 1 gilt I INVENTOR kkM/T ALUNDELL 6.84 W, *Qa

ATTORNEY Jan. 11, 1966 K. A. LUNDELL 3,228,740

MODULAR DRAWER HANDLE 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 Filed Jan. 22, 1964 INVENTORKERN/7 A. LUNDELL BY 62 M, M 'm A ORNEY United States Patent 3,228,740MODULAR DRAWER HANDLE Kermit A. Lnndell, Jamestown, N.Y., assignor toWeber- Knapp Company, Jamestown, N.Y. Filed Jan. 22, 1964, Ser. No.339,447 7 Claims. (Cl. 312-320) This invention relates to improvementsin combination handle and latch assemblies for drawers and the like, andmore particularly to such devices as are adapted to perform the multiplefunctions of carrying handles and drawer pull handles and drawerlevering devices and drawer holding latch mechanisms.

The device of the present invention is specifically designed tofacilitate manually carrying a heavy drawer or the like and theninserting it in horizontally moving attitude into a cabinet, rack or thelike, to a point short of its intended home position; and then throughmanipulation of a lever portion of the mechanism to pry the drawer intoits final seated and locked position within the cabinet against anyaccidental disengagement therefrom. Then when it is desired to removethe drawer from the supporting rack or cabinet, the device is manuallyactuated first to release the holding latch mechanism and then to leverthe drawer out of its frictionally held position, and finally tofunction in the manner of a drawer pull and carrying handle device.

For example, functionally integrated groups of electronic equipment areoften set up in banks of housings of drawer-like form, thereby providingfor individual installation and/ or replacements of the modules which,when pressed home into their prescribed positions within the supportedrack or cabinet, become electrically interconnected through plug-jacksor the like to form a complete electrical system. In such installationsfully positive electrical interconnections are of course prerequisite.The interconnection devices usually employed for such purposes are inmany cases large in number and are of the tight slidefit contact types;and therefore considerable force must be applied during certain phasesof movements of a module drawer in order to force it into its final andelectrically connected position, and to release it therefrom. Also, suchinstallations often require the provision of compression gaskets or thelike in order to atmospherically seal the drawer in closed position; andthe presence of such gaskets still further increases the loads to beovercome in driving the drawer into home position.

The present invention has for one of its objects to provide an improveddevice that is usable .as a handle for carrying a module or drawer fromplace to place and then leading it to slide into a rack or cabinet; andalso as a lever for forcing the drawer to then move into its finalposition, and then furthermore operating to automatically lock themodule in its firmly seated and electrically connected position.

Another object of the invention is to provide a handlelatch assembly asaforesaid that includes a lever member operable to force the drawer tomove against frictional constraints or the like both into and out of itshome position, thereby facilitating the making and releasing of itselectrical connections, as explained hereinabove.

Another object of the invention lies in the provision of a handle-latchassembly as aforesaid wherein a hinged lever is provided to havelatching engagement with the handle proper following full closing of thedrawer, such that no shocks, vibrations or other forces, short ofcomplete damage to the mechanism, will be effective to permit unintendedrelease of the lever and movement of the drawer.

A further object of the invention is to provide in a device as aforesaidimproved means for locking the drawer ice in its rack or cabinet, saidmeans including a lever and multiple latch devices that requiresequential multiple manual manipulations in two different directions toeffect release of the latches from the lever and consequent release ofthe drawer preparatory to use of the lever to force the drawer to move.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will be more fullyunderstood from a consideration of the following specification, taken inconjunction with the accompanying drawing in which:

PEG. 1 is a fragmentary isometric view showing a portion of a rack orcabinet and a drawer locked in closed position therein by means of apair of mechanisms of the invention;

FIG. 2 is a horizontal sectional view, taken substantially on the line22 of FIG. 1, and showing the general relationship between the drawerhandle-latch devices and the cabinet-mounted keepers;

FIG. 3 is an enlarged fragmentary vertical sectional view takengenerally as suggested by the line 33 of FIG. 2, and showing therelation of the handle and its lever and latch mechanisms before thedrawer reaches its initial and temporary stop station when approachingits final home position in the cabinet;

FIG. 4 is a view similar to FIG. 3 but shows the keeper acting as theinitial or temporary stop to further closing movement of the drawer;

FIG. 5 is a view similar to FIG. 4 showing the lever being raised tocause the pin thereon to enter the keeper slot;

FIG. 6 is a view similar to FIG. 5 showing the lever pin exerting pulland forcing the drawer to move in towards further closed position;

FIG. 7 is a view similar to FIG. 6 showing the parts at a still closerposition of the drawer head to the cabinet, and initial contact of thestrike portion of the lever with one of the latch devices carried by thehandle;

FIG. 8 is a view similar to the upper portion of FIG. 7 but shows thestrike portion of the lever about to be engaged by the second latchdevice of the mechanism;

FIG. 9 is a view similar to FIGS. 7-8 but shows how the latches lockupon the strike portion of the lever when the drawer is fully closed;

FIG. 10 is a view similar to the upper portion of FIG. 9 but illustratesthe first step in manual release of the lever when the drawer is to bewithdrawn from the cabinet;

FIG. 11 is a view similar to FIG. 10 showing how both lever latches aremanually disengaged from the strike portion of the lever;

FIG. 12 is a fragmentary enlarged vertical sectional view of thecomponents of the mechanism as they appear in FIG. 9;

FIG. 13 corresponds to FIG. 12 but shows the parts when completelyreleased as in FIG. 11;

FIG. 14 is an enlarged vertical sectional view of cooperative parts ofthe lower end of the lever and the drawer keeper when the lever is beingmanipulated to start to pry the drawer away from the frictionalrestraints of the electrical connection devices;

FIG. 15 is a view similar to FIG. 14 but showing the final cam action ofthe lever on the keeper to disengage the drawer and force it to move outinto fully released position;

FIG. 16 is an enlarged fragmentary top plan view of that portion of thestructure encircled in FIG. 2;

FIG. 17 is a frontal view of an upper portion of the handle and leverand latches; being taken as suggested by the line 1717 of FIG. 6; and

FIG. 18 is a rear view of a portion of the lever, being taken assuggested by the line 13-18 of FIG. 6.

As shown in the drawing herewith, the invention may be embodied inconjunction with a drawer or module or the like as indicated generallyat (FIG. 1) which is adapted to be housed within a rack or cabinethaving a front view frame structure as indicated at 12; it beingunderstood of course that the rack 12 will be provided with supportrails or the like running horizontally from front to rear upon which thedrawer 10 may slide or roll. As shown in FIG. 2, the drawer includes theusual front or head plate 14 and side walls 14a; and the rack 12includes partition or side walls as indicated at 16-46. Perime-terallyof the drawer opening the front face of the rack is recessed toaccommodate a compression gasket 16a formed of foam rubber or the like,whereby when the drawer is home in fully closed position it isatmospherically sealed in the cabinet.

As shown in FIG. 2 a drawer keeper 17 is fastened to the inside of eachside wall 16 of the cabinet, as by means of screws 18 (FIGS. 3 etc.) andthe drawer head plate 14 is suitably slotted to receive the outerextending ends 19 of the keepers in free-sliding relation therethrough.At their outer ends the members 19-19 are reduced at their oppositesides to provide slightly inclined frontal land portions 2121 atopposite sides of a centrally disposed reduced width end portion 22which is formed with an upwardly facing notch 23, thereby terminating inan upwardly directed hook portion 24. A combination handle and lever andlatch mechanism, as indicated generally at 26, is mounted on the drawerfront plate in conjunction with each of the keepers 19; being thereforeshown herein as being two in number; but it is to be understood thatonly one mechanism, or any other desired number thereof, may be employedin conjunction with a drawer, according to the weight and dimensionalcharacteristics thereof.

As shown herein, each mechanism 26 of the invention includes a fixedhandle portion 27 having legs 28, 28a fastened to the drawer head plate14 as by means of screws 31 (FIGS. 1215). The top leg portions 28 eachpivotally mounts a primary latch member 32 between a bifurcated upperextension portion 33 thereof, by means of a pivot pin 34. The lower legportion 28a of each handle is formed with an extension 36 upon which ispivotally connected the bifurcated lower end of a lever 37 by means of apin 38; the end of the lever being bifurcated to provide parallel ears39-39 straddling the keeper portions 22, 24 and the handle portion 36and receiving the ends of the pivot pin 38.

Further details of the operative parts of the latching structure and thelever 37 will be set forth herebelow, but for the moment it will beunderstood that the drawer may be transported to or from the cabinet bymerely grasping the combined handle and lever mechanisms as shown inFIG. 1 and letting the drawer hang therefrom. However, when the drawerhas been lifted and slid into the cabinet (supported on a suitablesuspension device, not shown) the latch 32 is then manipulated torelease the lever 37, allowing it to drop into the position shown inFIGS. 3 and 4. The ears 3939 include rounded cam surface portions 42having rather extensive movements in circular paths about the pin 38when the lever 37 moves between the positions of FIGS. 3 and 9. Anactuator dog in the form of a pin 41 is carried by and bridges the ears3939; being located remote from the pivot pin 38. Thus, the dog 41 movesin an are about pivot pin 38 when the lever is moved.

Referring now particularly to FIGS. 3-6; as seen in FIG. 3 when thedrawer is initially inserted and moved inwardly of the cabinet with thelever 37 now dropped to its lowermost position; the dog 41 is therebydisposed above and clears the end 24 of the keeper 17. Further inwardmovement of the drawer (FIG. 4) will now cause the cam areas 42 tocontact the inclined surfaces 21, and due to the attitude of the lever37, this serves to stop further inward movement of the drawer. Againreferring to FIG. 4, note that the dog 41 is now disposed directly abovethe slot 23. The electrical connection devices at the rear of the drawerare now in immediate proximity and alignment with their counterparts atthe rear of the cabinet and it is only necessary to now bring them intoslide-fitting relationship.

To this end the lever or levers 37, as the case may be, are manuallyrotated about their pins 38, and this movement causes dog 41 to swingdownwardly into the keeper slot 23 (FIG. 5), and then to bear againstthe forward wall of the slotted portion. As the lever 37 continues itsupward swinging movement (FIG. 6), the pin 41 reacts against the keeperto move the drawer inwardly of the cabinet to further closed position.This movement is best indicated by comparing the different positions ofthe drawer head 14 with the cabinet front as shown in FIGS. 36. Finalmovement of the lever 37, as progressively shown in FIGS. 7 and 8,brings the drawer head 14 into gasket compressing and tight engagementwith the walls of the cabinet. As will be readily appreciated, the camaction developed by the lever device will create tremendous forcesassuring proper interfitting of the electrical connecting parts of thedrawer unit and the cabinet, and closure of the sealing device. As notedabove, many installations to which this invention is applicable requiregasket-like protection against moisture etc. and, consequently, it isnot only necessary that the electrical parts be properly united, butthat the gasket seals also be perfected. This requires the applicationof tremendous leverage forces. When the drawer is finally pried into itshome position the lever 37 is engaged by the latch 32 located at theupper end of the handle 27 as will be explained hereinafter, andthenceforth cannot swing downwardly to release the drawer except undersuch circumstances and manipulation thereof as is hereinafter detailed.

It is to be noted that the handle assembly comprising the parts 27, 37not only serves the conventional purpose of a drawer pull, but alsoprevents any unintended drawer movement or displacement whatsoever. Asseen best in FIGS. 12 and 13, the lever holding latch structure is ofcompound nature, and will now be described in detail. The upperextension 33 of the handle leg 28 is vertically slotted, as shown inFIG. 16, and the walls 33 receive therebetween one end of the latch bar32, pivotally held therein by pin 34. This bar 32, forwardly of the endsof the walls 33, is clevis shaped to provide arms 4646 between which thebody 47 of a secondary latch or trigger 48 is located. A pin 49pivotally mounts the trigger 48 as shown in FIGS. 12 and 13, andincludes a forwardly directed latching lug 51, a rear stop shoulder 52(FIG. 13) and a thumb pad 53. The trigger latch 48 is yieldingly held inthe relationship to primary latch bar 32 shown in FIGS. 3, 4, 12, bymeans of a springurged pin 54, carried by the bar 32. Withdrawal of thelug 51 from the position of FIG. 12 to that of FIG. 13 requiresdepressing the thumb tab 53 against the force of the spring pin 54. Acompression spring working against the rear end of the latch bar 32exerts pressure yieldingly holding the latch bar in the position shownin FIG. 12.

As shown in FIGS. 12, 13, and 17, the forward or free ends 46 of theprimary latch bar terminate in depending hooks 56, being spaced apart bythe body portion 47 of the trigger 48 therebetween. A latch release tab57 is located to extend laterally from one of the arm portions 46directly beneath the trigger release tab 53 (see FIG. 17). The upper endportion of the lever 37 includes an inwardly extending part 59, acrossthe vertical face of which is provided a groove 61. Above this groovethe part 59 is formed with an inclined strike surface 62. The extremeend 63 of the lever arm 37 is for-med with a vertical inwardly extendingrib 64. Behind the strike surface 62 the lever is formed with anupwardly opening groove 66.

As previously explained, assuming that the drawer has been projectedinto the cabinet 12 to an extent such that the drawer supportingsuspensions have been engaged and the drawer is now movable inwardlytoward its closed position, the lever 37 will now be disengaged from itsparallel latched relation with the handle proper 27, by releasing firstthe trigger and then the primary latch 32 from the upper end of thelever. Hence the lever is disengaged at its upper end from the handleand is permitted to swing downwardly into the position as shown in FIG.3, wherein t e cam area 42 contacts the under surface of leg 28a of thehandle. The handle 27 may now be used for moving the drawer furtherinwardly, such as from the position of FIG. 3 to that of FIG. 4 whereatinward movement of the drawer is momentarily stopped by contact of thelever cam area 42 against the edge 21 of the keeper bar 17. The partsare so arranged that at this point the electrical or other connectors,contacts, pins, plugs, etc., forming parts of the drawer contained unit,are now disposed in immediate proximity with their engageablecounterparts carried by or formed in the rear wall of the cabinet.Typically, there may be several hundred such connection devices inconjunction with a drawer unit, and therefore any headlong or rapidforcing of the drawer into fully closed position could readily damage orotherwise prevent proper interrelation of the connection parts. Thus,from the stop point of FIG. 4, the remaining travel of the drawer intofully closed position must be slow and deliberate in order to assurecorrect homing of the module in the cabinet.

Following contact of the cam area 42 with the surface 21 of the cabinetmounted keeper 17 the lever 37 is raised, and in the course of beingraised it first assumes a position such as shown in FIG. 5. It will benoted that the stop position in FIG. 4 shows the pin 41 as beingdisposed directly above the slot 23 in the keeper. As the lever is movedas to the position of FIG. 5, the pin 41 swings downwardly and forwardlyinto the slot 23 and engages the forward wail thereof. Referring now toFIG. 6, then as the lever 37 is pivotally moved further upwardly andinto closer association with the handle 27, the pin 41 operates to forcethe drawer to move further inwardly of the cabinet. The progress of thedrawer relative to the cabinet is depicted in FIGS. 5, 6, 7, 9 whereuponpin 41 has now reached its forwardmost position and final lever movementto bring the drawer front 14 into full closing relation with the cabinetfront. At this point, all electrical connections or the like betweenunit and the cabinet will have been completed, and the gasket devicetightly compressed therebetween.

Attention is now directed to the operations of the latch parts duringmovement of the lever, as described hereinabove, and for this purposereference is made to FIGS. 7, 8, and 9, and to the detailed sectionalshowings of FIGS. 12 and 13. The strike portion 62 of the lever 37 (FIG.7) first makes contact with the hooks 56, and the incline of the strikesurface causes latch bar 32 to swing upwardly about its pivot pin 34;and, as still further movement of the lever takes place, the inner edgeof the strike contacts and depresses lug 51 of the trigger 48 (FIG. 8).Thus space is provided between the hooks 56 and lug 51 to receive theentire strike therebetween. When the strike enters this area, spring 55urges the bar 32 to pivot in clockwise direction, causing the hooks 56to enter the groove 66. Thus, the primary latch engages the lever tohold it in the position shown in FIGS. 9, 12. Since the trigger 43 iscaried by latch bar 32, lug 51 also swings into position beneath thestrike into the groove 61 in response to the force of spring-pin 54.Thus the strike of the lever 37 is jointly gripped at opposite edges bythe hooks 56 and the lug 51. Note that as shown in FIGS. 7, 12, when thelatch par-ts are released the step end portion 52 of the secondary latch43% abuts the top surface of the main latch 32, thereby holding the lugportion 51 of the secondary latch in proper alignment with the groove 61of the lever for automatic engagement of the latch parts 6 when thelever is pushed home. As shown for ex ample in FIG. 9 the latch partsare shaped to provide sufficient clearances between the parts, so thatwhen the lever is pushed home the latch parts fall easily in lockingposition.

As best seen in FIGS. 9, 12, it is to be noted that the vertical rib 64on the lever 37 fits between the hooks 5656 of the latch bar 32. Thisinterfitting of these parts prevents any inadvertent lateral thrusts onthe lever from unlatching it from the handle. Also, the arrangement ofthe hooks 5656 prevents separation of the lever from the primary latchby any direct outward pulls thereon, and any upward or downward relativemovements of the latch are prevented by the engagement between the lug51 of the trigger 48 with the grooved portion 61 of the lever. Thus itwill be understood that short of breaking of the parts of the latch andlever and handle assembly, the drawer may not be released from thecabinet keeper without first manually releasing the latch 32 andswinging the lever 37 from the position of FIG. 9 to that of FIG. 4. Thepresent invention thus takes into consideration the need, not only forassuring securement of the drawer in closed position, but also forpreventing inadvertent release and withdrawal thereof.

In order to manipulate the latch 32 to release the lever 37 thefollowing procedure is necessary, attention being directed to FIGS. 10and 11. The tab 53 carried by the trigger 48 is first pressed downwardlyto rotate the trigger and withdraw the lug 51 from the groove 61. Thisso disengages the strike 62 as to enable the operator to exert a thumband finger squeeze pressure between the upper tab 53 and the lower tab57, and then to swing the latch bar upwardly and away from the lever asshown for example in FIGS. 11, 13. The trigger and latch controlmembers, being spring-urged, will return to their normal relativepositions shown in FIGS. 3 and 12, when the manual pressures arereleased. When the latch 32 is released as above described the gaskets(or other sealing devices) will be released to exert an opening pressureon the drawer. The drawer movement as a result of this pressure willcause the lever 37 to swing forwardly into the position suggested inFIG. 14. The frictionally interfitted connection parts of the unit andcabinet are still sufficiently engaged as to prevent any more than aninitial movement of the drawer wherein the cam areas 42 of the leverengage the lower portions of the inclined edges 21 of the keeper 17(FIG. 14). To fully release the electrical and/ or other connectors, andto enable withdrawal of the drawer, the lever is now manually swungdownwardly, whereupon the cam areas 42 ride upwardly on the keeper edges21, and by so doing force the drawer outwardly of the cabinet to suchextent as to fully separate all connections between the drawer unit andthe cabinet; The handle proper 27 is now utilized to pull the drawerfurther outwardly on its suspension mechanism. Prior to lifting thedrawer away from its suspension, the lever 37 is preferably swung backup into latched connection with the handle member 27, whereupon amechanicaly reinforced double handle device is available for grippingand carrying the drawer in vertically hanging attitude therefrom, asexplained hereinabove.

It will of course be understood that whereas only one specific form ofthe invention has been illustrated and described in detail herein,various changes may be made therein without departing from the spirit ofthe invention or the scope of the following claims:

I claim:

1. A combination carrying handle and latching mechanism for a draweradapted to be inserted in a storage device of the rack or cabinet type,said storage device having a keeper extending forwardly therefrom andincluding a forward facing abutment and a hook portion forwardly spacedtherefrom, said mechanism comprising,

a fixed handle for permanent attachment to the front of said drawer,

a lever shaped generally to complement the front profile shape of saidhandle and pivotally connected at one end thereof to one end of saidhandle,

said lever terminating in a cam portion extending endsurfaces disposedin three dimensionally transverse plane relationships,

a main latch carried by said handle and spring-biased to simultaneouslyengage said first and second nose wise beyond the position of thepivotal connection portions of said lever when the latter is manually ofsaid lever to said handle, and having a dog porpivoted into its closedposition, thereby locking tion extending laterally from said camportion, the said lever to said handle and said drawer in said partsbeing so dimensioned and arranged that when storage device,

said lever is pivoted to its open position said cam and a second latchcarried by said first latch and portion moves into alignment with saidkeeper abutl0 spring-biased to engage said third nose portion of mentand the pivotal interconnection of said lever said lever when the latteris in closed position, and handle whereby to act as a stop againstfullinthereby locking said main latch against accidental sertion .of saiddrawer into said storage device with disengagement from said lever,

said dog portion disposed in registry with said hook whereby said levermay be disengaged. from said hanportion of said keeper whereby manualpivoting of dle by manual release consecutively of said second saidlever will thereupon simultaneously shift said and first latches andthen pivoted to its open posicam portion out of interfering relationwith said tion whereupon said cam portion reacts against said keeperabutment while driving said dog portion into keeper abutment portion topry said drawer from said keeper hook portion and reacting thereagainstits fully inserted position and to free it for withto pry said drawerfirmly into fully inserted position drawal from said storage device.

in said storage device,

3. A combination carrying handle and latching mechanism for a draweradapted to be inserted in a storage device of the rack or cabinet type,said storage device having a keeper extending forwardly therefrom andineluding a forward facing abutment and a hook portion forwardly spacedtherefrom, said mechanism comprising,

said lever being formed at its other end with first, second and thirdnose portions providing hook land surfaces disposed in threedimensionally transverse plane relationships,

a main latch carried by said handle and spring-biased to engage saidfirst and second nose portions of said lever when the latter is manuallypivoted into its closed" position, thereby locking said lever to said afixed handle for permanent attachment to the front of said drawer, v alever shaped generally to complement the front prohandle and said drawerin said storage device, file shape of said handle and pivotallyconnected at a second latch carried by said first latch and springoneend thereof to one end of said handle,

biased to engage said third nose portion of said lever said lever havinga dog portion extending laterally when the latter is in closed position,thereby locktherefrom, the parts being so dimensioned and aring saidmainlatch against accidental disengagement ranged that when said leveris pivoted to its closed from said lever, 3 position said dog portion isdriven into said keeper and finger tab means extending from said mainand hook portion and reacts thereagainst to pry said second latches formanual release thereof whereby dr wer firmly into fully insertedposition in said said lever may be disengaged from said handle bystorage device, initial release of said second latch and then release ad l ver ing formed at its other end with first, secof said main latchwhereupon said lever may be 011d and third H056 Portions Providing 1100K18nd 811T- pivoted to its open position causing said cam porfacesdisposed in three dimensionally transverse tion to react against saidkeeper abutment portion to plan e atlonshlps, pry said drawer out of itsfully inserted position and a ma at h carried by said handle andspring-biased to free it for withdrawal from said storage device. *slltaneously engage said first and second nose 2. A combination carryinghandle and latching mechportions of said lever when the latter ismanually anism for a drawer adapted to be inserted in a storage 'P YInto Position, thereby locking device of the rack or cabinet type, saidmechanism com- S211d level i d ndl and Said drawer in said prising,storage device,

a keeper extending forwardly from said storage device a Second t hCarried by said first latch and spring-- and including a forward facingabutment and a hook biased to engage salfl Phlfd nose P P 0f Saldportion f dl Spaced the f o lever when the latter is 111 closedposition, thereby a fixed handle for permanent attachment to the frontlocklng 531d P latch agalnst accldental g of said d ment from saldlever,

a lever pivotally connected at one end thereof to one and finger tabmeans eXtelldlIlg m ald main and end of i handle, second latches formanual release thereof whereby said lever terminating in a cam portionextending end- Sald lelfer may i gf ff Sald handle and Wise adjacent theposition of the pivotal connection then Its open PP t0 e d of said leverto said handle, and having a dog pordrawer 9 f t l from Sald Storage ltion extending laterally from Said cam portion 4. A combination carryinghandle and latching mechthe parts being so dimensioned and arranged thatwhen for a drawer adapteid to be inseited in a a said lever is pivotedwits position Said cam device of the rack or cabinet type, said storagedevice portion moves into alignment with said keeper abuthaving a keeperextendmg forwardly therefrom and ment and the pivotal interconnection ofsaid lever eluding a forward facing abutment and a hook Portion andhandle whereby to act as a stop against full insertion of said drawerinto said storage device with forwardly spaced therefrom, said mechanismcomprising,

a fixed handle for permanent attachment to the front of said drawer,sald.dog portion dlsposed m reglstry Wlth sald hook a lever shapedgenerally to complement the front proportlon of Sand i file shape ofsaid handle and pivotally connected at whereby manual pivoting of said,lever w1ll thereupon one end thfleof to one end of Said handlesimultaneously shift said cam portion out of inter- Said leverterminating i a cam portion extending endfering relation with saidkeeper abutment While driv- Wise beyond the Position of the pivotalconnection 8 Said dog Portion into Said p hook Portion of said lever tosaid handle, and having a dog porand reacting it thereagainst t0 P ySaid drawer tion extending laterally from said cam portion, the 3 intofully inserted Position in Said Storage device, parts being sodimensioned and arranged that when said lever being formed at its otherend with first, secsaid lever is pivoted to its open position said camond and third nose portions providing hook land portion moves intoalignment with said keeper abutment and. the pivotal interconnection ofsaid lever and handle whereby to act as a stop against full insertion ofsaid drawer into said storage device with said dog portion disposed inregistry with said hook portion of said keeper whereby manual pivotingof said lever will thereupon simultaneously shift said cam portion outof interfering relation with said keeper abutment while driving said dogportion into said keeper hook portion and reacting thereagainst to prysaid drawer firmly into fully inserted position in said storage device,

said lever being formed at its other end with hook means,

a first latch means carried by said handle and springbiased to engagesaid hook means of said lever when the latter is manually pivoted intoits closed position, thereby locking said lever to said handle and saiddrawer in said storage device,

and a second latch carried by said first latch means and spring-biasedto engage said lever when the latter is in closed position, therebylocking said first latch against accidental disengagement from saidlever whereby said lever may be disengaged from said handle by releaseof said latches and pivoted to its open position whereupon said camportion reacts against said keeper abutment portion to pry said drawerfrom its fully inserted position and to free it for withdrawal from saidstorage device.

5. A combination handle and latching mechanism for a drawer adapted tobe inserted in a storage device of the rack or cabinet type, saidstorage device having a keeper extending forwardly therefrom andincluding an abutment portion and a hook portion, said mechanismcomprising,

a fixed handle for permanent attachment to the front of said drawer,

a lever shaped generally to complement the front profile shape of saidhandle and pivotally connected at one end thereof to one end of saidhandle for alternate pivoting movements between closed or handleparalleland laterally extending or open positions,

said lever having an eccentric dog portion extending therefrom and theparts being so dimensioned and arranged that when said lever is pivotedfrom its open position to its closed position said dog portion willenter said keeper hook portion and react thereagainst to pry said drawerfirmly into fully inserted position in said storage device,

said lever being formed at its free end with a latch nose portionproviding first, second and third keeper surfaces disposed in threetransverse plane relationships,

a main latch carried by said handle and spring-biased to simultaneouslyengage said first and second keeper surfaces of said lever when thelatter is manually pivoted into its closed position, thereby lockingsaid lever to said handle and said drawer in said storage device,

and a second latch carried by said first latch and springbiased toengage said third keeper surface of said lever when the latter is inclosed position, thereby locking said main latch against accidentaldisengagement from said lever, said latches being manually releaseablewhereby said lever may be disengaged from said handle and then pivotedto its open position to free said drawer for withdrawal from saidstorage device.

6. A latching mechanism for a drawer adapted to be inserted in a storagedevice of the rack or cabinet type, said storage device having a keeperextending forwardly therefrom and including a forward facing abutmentand a hook portion forwardly spaced therefrom, said mechanismcomprising,

a lever pivotally connected at one end thereof to said drawer,

said lever having a dog portion extending laterally therefrom, the partsbeing so dimensioned and arranged that when said lever is pivoted to itsclosed 10 position said dog portion is driven into said keeper hookportion and reacts thereagainst to pry said drawer firmly into fullyinserted position in said storage device,

said lever being formed at its other end with first, second and thirdnose portions providing hook land surfaces disposed in threedimensionally transverse plane relationships,

a main latch pivotally carried by said drawer and springbiased tosimultaneously engage said first and second nose portions of said leverwhen the latter is manually pivoted into its closed position, therebylocking said lever to said drawer in said storage device,

a second latch carried by said first latch and springbiased to engagesaid third nose portion of said lever when the latter is in closedposition, thereby locking said main latch against accidentaldisengagement from said lever,

and finger tab means extending from said main and second latches formanual release thereof whereby said lever may be disengaged from saiddrawer and then pivoted to its open position to free said drawer forwithdrawal from said storage device.

7. A latching mechanism for a drawer adapted to be inserted in a storagedevice of the rack or cabinet type, said storage device having a keeperextending forwardly therefrom and including a forward facing abutmentand a hook portion forwardly spaced therefrom, said mechanismcomprising,

a lever pivotally connected at one end thereof to said drawer,

said lever terminating in a cam portion extending endwise beyond theposition of the pivotal connection of said lever to said drawer, andhaving a dog portion extending laterally from said cam portion, theparts being so dimensioned and arranged that when said lever is pivotedto its open position said cam portion moves into alignment with saidkeeper abutment and the pivotal interconnection of said lever and drawerwhereby to act as a stop against full insertion of said drawer into saidstorage device with said dog portion disposed in registry with said hookportion of said keeper whereby manual pivoting of said lever willthereupon simultaneously shift said cam portion out of interferingrelation with said keeper abutment while driving said dog portion intosaid keeper hook portion and reacting thereagainst to pry said drawerfirmly into fully inserted position in said storage device,

said lever being formed at its other end with hook means,

a first latch means carried by said drawer and springbiased to engagesaid hook means of said lever when the latter is manually pivoted intoits closed position, thereby locking said lever to said drawer and saiddrawer in said storage device,

and a second latch carried by said first latch means and spring-biasedto engage said lever when the latter is in closed position, therebylocking said first latch against accidental disengagement from saidlever whereby said lever may be disengaged from said drawer by releaseof said latches and pivoted to its open position whereupon said camportion reacts against said keeper abutment portion to pry said drawerfrom its fully inserted position and to free it for withdrawal from saidstorage device.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,544,314 3/1951Hebbel 20050 3,140,905 7/ 1964 Trotter et al 312-320 CLAUDE A. LE ROY,Primary Examiner..

FRANK B. SHERRY, Examiner.

F, DOMOTOR, Assistant Examiner.

1. A COMBINATION CARRYING HANDLE AND LATCHING MECHANISM FOR A DRAWERADAPTED TO BE INSERTED IN A STORAGE DEVICE OF THE RACK OR CABINET TYPE,SAID STORAGE DEVICE HAVING A KEEPER EXTENDING FORWARDLY THEREFROM ANDINCLUDING A FORWARD FACING ABUTMENT AND A HOOK PORTION FORWARDLY SPACEDTHEREFROM, SAID MECHANISM COMPRISING, A FIXED HANDLE FOR PERMANENTATTACHMENT TO THE FRONT OF SAID DRAWER, A LEVER SHAPED GENERALLY TOCOMPLEMENT THE FRONT PROFILE SHAPE OF SAID HANDLE AND PIVOTALLYCONNECTED AT ONE END THEREOF TO ONE END OF SAID HANDLE, SAID LEVERTERMINATING IN A CAM PORTION EXTENDING ENDWISE BEYOND THE POSITION OFTHE PIVOTAL CONNECTION OF SAID LEVER TO SAID HANDLE, AND HAVING A DOGPORTION EXTENDING LATERALLY FROM SAID CAM PORTION, THE PARTS BEING SODIMENSIONED AND ARRANGED THAT WHEN SAID LEVER IS PIVOTED TO ITS "OPEN"POSITION SAID CAM PORTION MOVES INTO ALIGNMENT WITH SAID KEEPER ABUTMENTAND THE PIVOTAL INTERCONNECTION OF SAID LEVER AND HANDLE WHEREBY TO ACTAS A STOP AGAINST FULL INSERTION OF SAID DRAWER INTO SAID STORAGE DEVICEWITH SAID DOG PORTION DISPOSED IN REGISTRY WITH SAID HOOK PORTION OFSAID KEEPER WHEREBY MANUAL PIVOTING OF SAID LEVER WILL THEREUPONSIMULTANEOUSLY SHIFT SAID CAM PORTION OUT OF INTERFERING RELATION WITHSAID KEEPER ABUTMENT WHILE DRIVING SAID DOG PORTION INTO SAID KEEPERHOOK PORTION AND REACTING THEREAGAINST TO PRY SAID DRAWER FIRMLY INTOFULLY INSERTED POSITION IN SAID STORAGE DEVICE, SAID LEVER BEING FORMEDAT ITS OTHER END WITH FIRST, SECOND AND THIRD NOSE PORTIONS PROVIDINGHOOK LAND SURFACES DISPOSED IN THREE DIMENSIONALLY TRANSVERSE PLANERELATIONSHIPS, A MAIN LATCH CARRIED BY SAID HANDLE AND SPRING-BIASED TOENGAGE SAID FIRST AND SECOND NOSE PORTIONS OF SAID LEVER WHEN THE LATTERIS MANUALLY PIVOTED INTO ITS "CLOSED" POSITION, THEREBY LOCKING SAIDLEVER TO SAID HANDLE AND SAID DRAWER IN SAID STORAGE DEVICE, A SECONDLATCH CARRIED BY SAID FIRSTE LATCH AND SPRINGBIASED TO ENGAGE SAID THIRDNOSE PORTION OF SAID LEVER WHEN THE LATTER IS IN "CLOSED" POSITION,THEREBY LOCKING SAID MAIN LATCH AGAINST ACCIDENTAL DISENGAGEMENT FROMSAID LEVER AND FINGER TAB MEANS EXTENDING FROM SAID MAIN AND SECONDLATCHES FOR MANUAL RELEASE THEREOF WHEREBY SAID LEVER MAY BE DISENGAGEDFROM SAID HANDLE BY INITIAL RELEASE OF SAID SECOND LATCH AND THENRELEASE OF SAID MAIN LATCH WHEREUPON SAID LEVER MAY BE PIVOTED TO ITS"OPEN" POSITION CAUSING SAID CAM PORTION TO REACT AGAINST SAID KEEPERABUTMENT PORTION TO PRY SAID DRAWER OUT OF ITS FULLY INSERTED POSITIONAND TO FREE IT FOR WITHDRAWAL FROM SAID STORAGE DEVICE.